Sly Dog
by Numb.Existance
Summary: There are thousands of ways to win another's heart, but why should one have to do all the work? AU KibaNaru One-Shot


**Sly Dog (A KibaxNaruto Fiction)**

Kiba used to barge into Naruto's apartment to announce some seemingly stupid and frivolous news, like, "Look! Look! I just won a free liter of Coke!" and he'd waggle a bottle cap in front of Naruto's peeved face and dance out, always forgetting to close the door behind him.

Two days would pass before Naruto would see Kiba next, sitting on top of the washing machine at the Laundromat, waiting for his clothes. Kiba would pretend to be meditating, murmuring, "Ohm.... Ohm..." under his breath, his long, colt-like legs folded beneath him, and would completely ignore Naruto until the blond finished pulling his clothes from the dryer. And then Kiba would stop ogling at Naruto's pile of underwear with half lidded eyes and open them completely to give Naruto a cocky smile, and ask if he was hungry and wanted to go to the diner next door to get some food.

Naruto didn't know how Kiba did it, but surely it wasn't all coincidence that when the blond would begin his trek to work, Kiba would pull up next to him in his beat-up little hatchback, and would escort Naruto to his job. Not all the time the brunet would do this, but Naruto could count on him during inclement weather. Naruto also was pretty sure Kiba planned it whenever the brunet sprang through his door, inquiring if Naruto needed to go food shopping, because that's what he was going to do, and if Naruto needed a ride? After going for groceries with Kiba several times, Naruto knew by the brunet's lack of actually buying real food and his explicit timing (the second Naruto opened his fridge to see there was nothing in it but that lonely box of baking soda) that the trips were all just for him.

Before long, Naruto began inviting Kiba over, whether it be for dinner or to see if his TV could also get free cable, if the brunet hooked it up just right. "Don't mind me, I just like your couch better," Kiba would say as he continued to doze on the other end of the old lumpy couch, as Naruto sorted through the bills, checkbook in lap. Naruto would sit, amazed at Kiba's audacity, but amused all the same.

At first, Naruto had tried to evade Kiba, thinking, 'Horny bastard, that pervert's just trying to get into my pants...' and locked the door. It soon became obvious that Kiba harassing the blond had nothing to do with sexual advances.

After all, nobody else nearly kicks down Naruto's door to plead, "They found out I was leeching cable off of the guys downstairs so I can't see it anymore, can I please, please watch on yours? Please! This is a life or death situation!" And upon opening it, Naruto nearly got barreled to the floor as Kiba leapt over the couch and became supreme ruler of the television for the night.

Kiba was like some stray dog that followed Naruto home one day, except he lived down the hall and had a demeanor of an exuberant puppy. It was apparent though, that Kiba planned on taking over Naruto's apartment as well, as Naruto walked through his tiny living space to find traces of the brunet everywhere. Half empty bag of chips which Kiba had brought over when he wandered in earlier, his soft, leather jacket from when he placed it around Naruto's shoulders during the short walk from the parking lot to the building, a picture Kiba tacked up haphazardly on the wall himself, of him and Naruto laughing at the bar the brunet dragged him to, to meet his friends (Shikamaru and Choji) and to ensure Kiba wouldn't end up puking alone in an alley on the way back. When in the end, it was Naruto that was carried home, back gently rubbed and blond hair held out of his face as he hugged the porcelain throne and emptied his stomach.

Naruto's friends (Sakura and Hinata) approved of Kiba because they were full of romantic notions and chick flick movie endings and thought the 'guy down the hall' scenario was not cliched at all, despite the fact that Naruto adamantly kept to the fact that they were just friends. Naruto thought that they were just caught up in Kiba's easy confidant walk and his adorable grins to notice any of the brunet's faults. It was Kiba's crowd that warned Naruto that Kiba was a "scheming, sly dog, that one." Naruto had laughed and agreed, because who else would follow him up and down the aisles in the grocery store, hinting that he should buy this or that because the brunet would really enjoy it if Naruto made him that pasta dish which was the blond's specialty.

Naruto liked their 2 a.m. talks, when they and the world around them became quiet and mellow, and they'd sit on Naruto's couch and talk about nothing and everything. "I'm sorry," Kiba would say genuinely, complete with a little smile, "I really shouldn't be keeping you up."

And Naruto would just shake his head, "No, it's okay, I have crazy insomnia anyway." And Kiba would grin, say that he also had insomnia, yawn, and start up that inane conversation about sheep and cotton candy again. And somehow, they'd get serious, and Naruto would bare his soul to Kiba as the blond told his insecurities and past failures, and Kiba would poke jokes at Naruto to make him see the lighter side of things. Sometimes, Naruto would get lucky and Kiba would also get serious and murmur quietly about the little things that meant a lot to him.

Kiba would sometimes surprise Naruto with things; things that Kiba thought Naruto would have a fancy for. It was Kiba's way to make up for all the times he used Naruto's TV, ate his food, stole his silverware and that one time he accidentally broke the hinges on Naruto's door. Because of Kiba, shot glasses with funny slogans on them appeared in Naruto's cupboard; cute stuffed animals from those arcade games with the claw (which Naruto was later informed that they were acquired by Kiba sticking his arm through the machine); old books bought off the street for a couple bucks each, which consisted of old, hard covers that just smelled and looked nice and made his little bookshelf look full, or children's books in different languages that had funny titles.

Sometimes Kiba would disappear for days, but to Naruto it felt like forever. Naruto would impatiently go about with his daily rituals, feeling anxious and unable to sit still while waiting for Kiba to burst through the door. Naruto's insomnia seemed to worsen when Kiba wasn't around for the blond to unload his worries of the day, and when there was no funny story to chuckle over because Kiba wasn't there to cause some sort of ruckus. Naruto would sit and try to figure out just how Kiba became such a constant in his life, and how his day would not feel complete without seeing Kiba's lanky form.

Naruto would never admit this though, and when Kiba finally came in noisily kicking Naruto's door open and rolling in like a SWAT team member, Naruto would roll his eyes, "Damn," the blond sighed, "Thought you were gone for good."

Kiba then would get up with a grin, raid the fridge and settle on his side of the couch. "You'll never get rid of me, HA HA!" the brunet boisterously laughed in that evil-villain sort of way. Laughing, Naruto playfully swat at Kiba's head and berated him for not closing the door, once again.

Naruto realized, during these many months, that he had no idea where Kiba stood exactly in their relationship. Naruto liked where it was now, and was completely comfortable with Kiba's presence. And even long spans of silence felt natural, which is a feat in itself.

It was when Naruto started fantasizing about curling up next to Kiba's dozing form and feeling the brunet's arms twine around him when Naruto realized he wasn't fine with what Kiba thought of them, despite the fact that Naruto didn't know what Kiba thought of it in the first place. Naruto assumed it was nothing, because though Kiba instigated their friendship, the brunet had done nothing to push it past that stage.

Sometimes though, Naruto would get his hopes up whenever Kiba became affectionate and would spontaneously grab the blond by the waist and pretend to push him into the fountain in front of the bank building. Kiba would flirt with Naruto too, usually trying out horrible pick up lines to make him laugh. "He's so horny right now," Naruto's friends laughed with a roll of their eyes, when they all went out once to the movies, and they all watched as Kiba excitedly ran to the arcade games lining the wall and hop onto the motorcycle racing game.

Naruto could never bring himself to approach Kiba, afraid that this was just a quirky friendship to the brunet and nothing more, and that by disturbing it could make things awkward. Naruto almost had brought it up, many times in fact, but would find his voice stuck in his throat, and the thought of rejection bobbing in his mind. Naruto would look up into Kiba's eyes after being accidentally woken up by him as the brunet extracted himself from Naruto's couch, and Kiba would gently smile at Naruto, and mess up his blond hair by ruffling his head. Kiba would leave with a grin, telling Naruto to get some real sleep and would steal away quietly, but always forgetting to close the door behind him.

It was after one night of getting reacquainted with old friends and "painting the town red," as Kiba had archaically named it, and both were still slightly tipsy and exhilarated, when Kiba came into Naruto's apartment with the blond to get a glass of water. Naruto watched him leave, as Kiba swung out of Naruto's door, still sipping at his glass of water. Not knowing whether it was because it was the alcohol or because he was still feeling reckless, Naruto was overwhelmed with a sudden need to know and ran out of the apartment, still not closing the door behind him, and caught up with Kiba as the brunet was searching for his keys outside his own door.

"Why," Naruto had asked, "do you always forget to close my door?" And suddenly Kiba was laughing, sounding as giddy as Naruto was when he sprinted out of his door. Naruto, however, began to get slightly nervous as Kiba collapsed into a chuckling pile at Naruto's feet; and even more so as Kiba got back up, drank the rest of the water in one gulp and placed the cup down in front of his still unopened door.

Kiba looked at Naruto then, locking their eyes as he smiled. "Took you long enough," the brunet said with a triumphant smile on his face, and Naruto gave Kiba a confused look. "I leave it open so it's easier for you to chase after me. I can't do all the work around here, you know." said Kiba as he gave Naruto a sloppy, hopeful grin. But, after several moments of silence and Naruto giving no response, Kiba's smile began to fade.

Naruto stared at Kiba, until the brunet looked away and began to mumble something and went back to fumbling through his pockets for his keys. At that moment, Naruto couldn't take it anymore, and burst out laughing. The realization swept through the blond, releasing a feeling of euphoria so Naruto was nearly in tears. "You are one sly dog..." Naruto had finally gasped out, and missed how Kiba's eyes lit up, a smile growing wide on his face. Still chuckling hysterically, Naruto felt Kiba's hands on his hips and was pulled closer as Kiba wrapped his arms around Naruto. But before Kiba could make another move, Naruto took initiative and looped his arms around Kiba's neck, and leaning forward, pressed their lips together.

**A/N:** A completely goofy and gushy thing I quickly jammed out that just proves that I am a romantic at heart. I had fun writing it though (yay for long, confusing, run-on sentences!) and I'll admit, there's a lot of awkward sentences there, so _**please review**_! Thanks.


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